Over approximately the last decade there has been increased work on the design and development of construction systems for multi-storey concrete and steel buildings for regions subject to seismic activity, which not only prevent catastrophic failure of the building and protect life, but which also enable buildings to withstand earthquakes without structural damage, so as to reduce the economic cost of building repair and/or reconstruction as well as minimising business interruption (downtime) after an earthquake.
In some cases very strong winds including cyclones can also cause building movement and structural damage.